ISLAMABAD: Thirty-eight Taliban border, officials said on Wednesday.
Pakistani aircraft pounded militant hideouts in the Saif Valley, Darang village and Shikan area of Kurram, killing 20 militants, including their commander Maulvi Moinuddin, a security official said on condition of anonymity.
Three important sanctuaries belonging to Mullah Tofan and Moinudin were destroyed during the airstrike, he told Pajhwok Afghan News over the telephone.
Resident Shahid Orakzai said the operation that started Tuesday night was still ongoing. However, he had no information about casualties and identifies of the dead.
In Kurram, 18 armed militants were killed in an overnight ground operation, said local journalist Iqbal Hussain. The dead included six Uzbek fighters, he said.
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KABUL: More than 40 tonnes of drugs were seized and seven suspected militants were detained during a series of joint operations in southern provinces, officials said on Wednesday.
The operations were conducted in Kandahar, Ghazni and Zabul provinces.
In addition to the drugs, 70 kilograms of explosives and a large cache of weapons were also confiscated in the Panjwai district of Kandahar on Wednesday, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said in a brief statement.
Meanwhile, the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) confirmed the seizure of the drugs, saying 400kg of additional hashish was set alight in southeastern Kunar province.
Elsewhere, a prayer leader was among seven people detained on the charge of cooperating with the Taliban in Ghazni and Zabul provinces in separate security operations, officials said.
Five of the suspects were detained in Khasha and Wali Qala areas of Khugyani district, the Ghazni governor’s spokesman, Mudassir Afghan, told Pajhwok Afghan News. Some weapons and ammunitions were recovered from their possession, he said.
A Taliban spokesman, Zabihullah Mujid, said the joint forces had arrested local residents.
Meanwhile, the ISAF media office in Kabul said two people loyal to the Taliban had been detained in the Shah Joy district. The detainees, including a prayer leader, were currently under Afghan security personnel custody for investigation, the force said in a statement.
The Shah Joy district chief, Mohammad Sadiq, identified the prayer leader as Ibrahim. However, he said it was not clear whether the allegation against him was true. He had no information about the second detainee.
Abdul Elham, a resident of the area, said they stayed awake all the night due to the noise of helicopters hovering over the area.
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KABUL: A drug cache was seized by a combined Afghan and coalition security force during a patrol in Panjwai district of southern Kandahar province, the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said on Wednesday.
A statement from the NATO-led force said the cache consisted of approximately 27,272 kilograms of marijuana. “Security forces destroyed all drugs on site without incident.”
In the same district, the joint force discovered 250 kilograms of marijuana seeds, which were confiscated and would be destroyed at a later date.
In the provincial capital, Kandahar City, a Taliban leader was detained along with several associates during an operation. The detainee allegedly executed attacks against coalition forces in the Tarnek wa Jaldak district of Zabul province.
Another rebel leader was arrested during an operation in Maiwand district. The leader operated an attack cell in Helmand province and conducted assaults in Nahr-i-Saraj and Sangin districts.
Elsewhere in the south, a coalition patrol found 150 kilograms of marijuana seeds in the Nahr-i-Saraj district of Helmand province.
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NANGARHAR: Eight tonnes of substandard and expired medicines were set alight in Jalalabad, the capital of eastern Nangarhar province, on Wednesday, an official said.
The medicine worth 7.5 million afghanis ($0.15 million) had been seized from 65 stores with support from pharmaceutical companies, the National Directorate of Security (NDS), police and the Attorney General’s Office.
Public Health Director Dr. Baaz Muhammad Sherzad told Pajhwok Afghan News another 10 tonnes of medicine captured by customs officials during checks would also be burnt in the near future.
“We have warned chemists and druggists of cancelling their licences and sealing their shops if they are found selling low-quality or expired medicine,” he added.
The Institute of Medical Sciences could train pharmacists and the problem could be solved if all the 600 owners of medical sores were trained, the director hoped.
Residents praised the step taken by the department and hoped the campaign would continue. “Medical store owners are putting the lives of people at risk,” said Imranullah, a resident of the third police district. He urged druggists to avoid selling expired and substandard medicine.
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PARWAN: Seven trainers with the Afghan Development Association (ADA) were arrested in connection with a recent blaze at the Sadiq High School in central Parwan province on Wednesday, an official said.
The ADA staffers, who were training schoolteachers in the province, were detained in Charikar, the provincial capital, police chief, Maj. Gen. Mohammad Akram, told Pajhwok Afghan News.
Akram said he had no information whether or not the trainers were involved in the arson attack.
Deputy chief of ADA, Aziz Ahmad Akbari, confirmed the arrest of seven trainers, saying they were trying to bail them out. He said the men were busy training 56 teachers at the school, where the fire erupted three days ago.
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